"The Fame Monster" Review

     Considering this weekend I attended Lady Gaga’s concert in Atlantic City, I think it is only appropriate to use her album "The Fame Monster" for my critique. An addition to her debut album "The Fame," "The Fame Monster" consists of eight new tracks. Ranging from dance tracks to a soulful ballad, the album blends dance/techno with some dark undertones. Although wildly popular, it is not another cheap bubble gum pop album; there is some substance to it. Often times, one buys an album for that one hit single. After playing that one hit song (I guess in this case it would be "Bad Romance") one finds that the rest of the album is lacking at best. Not this album. "The Fame Monster" has yielded three hit singles. Even the dissenters cannot deny that fact. 
     Gaga has been much criticized for her bizarre fashion choices and her provocative, attention-grabbing performances. Everyone, not just teens and the young twenty-somethings, has seen or heard of the pop diva and has something to say about her. She has been compared to Madonna and Queen, and has even been accused of ripping them off, copying their style or their music. However, on the basis of originality, I have to stand by Gaga on this one. Just as in fashion, nothing is truly original. Things that we wear now are based off of styles from previous decades, but have been reworked and modernized. To say that Lady Gaga has been influenced by David Bowie, Madonna, Andy Warhol, and the like, would be absolutely true. To say she she is merely copying this idols, however, I disagree with. As an artist, whether with music, paint, or whatever medium, it is completely normal to be inspired by other works or other fellow artists. The way you twist, turn, and recreate what has already been done is what constitutes your own style. And as far as Lady Gaga is concerned, it is hard to deny that she is one of a kind. 


"The Fame Monster" Review